Nuggets in Habakkuk Part 1 - God's Mysterious Ways

We're going to begin our worship by singing to God's praise in Psalm 93.

Let's sing Psalm's version, Psalm 93.

We'll sing the whole of this Psalm, verse 1 to 5.

The tune is St. Magnus.

The Lord is King, His throne endures, majestic in His height.

The Lord is robed in majesty and armed with strength and might.

We'll stand to sing, if you're able, to God's praise.

The Lord is King, His throne endures, majestic in His height.

The Lord is robed in majesty and armed with strength and might.

The world is founded firm and sure, removed it cannot be.

Your throne is strong and you are God from all eternity.

The seas, O Lord, have lifted up, they lifted up their voice.

The seas, O Lord, have lifted up their waves and made a mighty noise.

The Lord in whom, whom are strong, more powerful is He.

than thunder of the ocean's waves, or breakers of the sea.

Your royal structures.

Your royal statues, Lori's thongle, unchanging is Your word.

and holiness adores you us

for endless days, O Lord.

We unite our hearts in a short word of prayer.

Let us pray.

Our Father in heaven,

we do rejoice in your goodness to us,

that you are a God who blesses us so abundantly

and help us to be thankful each day

for all that is ours,

for all that we enjoy from your hand,

the food that we have,

the homes, the families,

the church that we enjoy coming to here

and learning more about you

and experiencing you

and being encouraged then to share

the good news of the gospel with others.

And we thank you, Lord,

that you have blessed us

with the promise of your Son,

the Savior, Jesus Christ.

And in all that we do,

we want to know more of him,

that we might love him with all our hearts

and experience him with us

all the days of our lives.

We thank you that that is your promise

as we put our trust in you,

that you will not leave us at any time,

but that you will be our constant companion.

So may you bless us,

each one here today.

Bless our young people

as we thank you for them.

We pray that you will be with them

in school and nursery

and in the Sunday school

and Crescent tweenies here.

May you watch over each one,

O Lord,

as we commit them to your care.

And we ask that you will hear

all our prayers at this time

and throughout this day

as we worship you.

Lord, may we rejoice in you

and be glad in you

and give thanks to you

for all that is ours

in you and in your son

as we ask it with the forgiveness

of our sins.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

It's a good thing to come together

and worship God.

It's a real blessing and encouragement

to see everyone who comes in

through these doors today

and everyone chins in online as well,

that we have that desire

to worship God

and to enjoy Him.

Now what about this week?

How have you enjoyed this past week?

What about the weather?

What a transformation

in the weather this week.

The sun being out

and it being so warm.

We went from,

I think it was hailstoning

the week before

to the sun cream coming out this week

and everybody just seems so happy.

Everybody just seems

to be enjoying themselves

so much when the sun is out

and the weather is good.

You may have got

the trampoline out this week

in the hope that now

the gales are past

that you can put the trampoline up

and enjoy that again

being out in the good weather.

You may have got

a paddling pool out this week

or something to enjoy

because it was so warm.

Maybe you bought ice cream

to enjoy

because that helps

to cool you down.

But it's amazing

the difference

the good weather makes.

And this week,

a couple of times

I was out in the castle grounds

and you meet a lot

of different people

out in the castle grounds

but this week in particular

everybody just seemed

so happy.

Nobody's head was down

into the rain.

They were all up

all saying good morning

or good afternoon.

Hello, how are you?

Everybody was just so happy.

I even bumped into

two of our elders

in the church here

and they were smiling

and happy.

I know it's hard to believe

but yes,

they were smiling

enjoying themselves

out in the sun.

It just makes

such a difference

to people.

And then you begin

to forget about

the winter

and the gales

and the rain

but then they'll

come again

at some point.

But it's good

to enjoy

the good weather

and to have something

that makes us happy

in these days.

But it's a reminder

too that it's not

just about the weather

to make us happy,

is it?

When we think

of what the Bible

teaches to us,

it reminds us

that it's not just

about great days

of sunshine

that we are

to be happy

but that whatever

we experience

in life

we can be happy

in Jesus.

That he is the one

who gives us

through joy

and through delight.

In John chapter 15,

John 15 · chapter mention

there Jesus is

talking to his disciples

and talking to us

and he's saying

to abide in him

and to abide in him

for a reason.

He says

in verse 11

of that chapter,

these things

I have spoken

to you

that my joy

may be in you

and that your joy

may be full.

And he's saying

that it's not just

for sunny days

that we are

to be full of joy

but even the days

when it's raining

and cold

and snowing,

we can still know

the joy of the Lord

and joy to the full.

You see,

when you know Jesus,

that means

that you have

his joy,

his joy in your heart,

a joy that passes

all understanding

as the Bible says,

a joy that is inexpressible.

We just almost

don't know how to show it

but it just comes

through in us.

The sun brings joy

out of us

but Jesus brings

all joy

to us

and out of us.

So may we enjoy

him today

and every day

and may we shine

with his joy

and his beauty

to all around us.

So may God bless

these thoughts

to us.

We're going to say

the Lord's Prayer

together now.

Our Father,

which art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come.

Thy will be done

on earth

as it is in heaven.

Give us this day

our daily bread

and forgive us

our debts

as we forgive

our debtors.

And lead us not

into temptation

but deliver us

from evil

for thine is the kingdom

the power

and the glory

forever.

Amen.

We're going to

sing again

to God's praise

now in Psalm 90

this time in the

Scottish Psalter version.

Psalm 90

page 349

of the Psalm books.

And the tune

is Arlington.

Psalm 90

at verse 1

we sing down

to verse 4.

Lord, thou hast

been our dwelling

place in generations

all, before thou ever

hadst brought forth

the mountains

great or small.

We'll sing to God's praise

verse 1

to verse 4.

Amen.

Lord, thou hast been

our dwelling place

and generations

all, before thou ever

hast gone forth,

before thou ever

hadst brought forth

the mountains

great or small.

earth and all the world

and all the world abroad

in life from everlasting

amaz온 that

all.

In thy

earth for everlasting

worth.

wurde, the rest of

world

to everlasting

God.

And unto them thou sittest again,

His sons of men return.

Because a thousand years appeared,

No more before thy sight.

Than yesterday when it is past,

Than yesterday when it is past,

For thou art now watch by night.

And we're going to turn to reading God's word in the Old Testament,

And near the end of the Old Testament in the book of Habakkuk.

The book of Habakkuk.

You'll find this around page 948 in the Bibles.

Habakkuk.

We're going to read chapter 1 and just into chapter 2, verse 1.

Habakkuk chapter 1.

Habakkuk 1 · chapter mention

The oracle that Habakkuk the prophet saw.

O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,

And you will not hear,

Or cry to you violence,

And you will not save?

Why do you make me see iniquity,

And why do you idly look at wrong?

Destruction and violence are before me,

Strife and contention arise,

So the law is paralyzed,

And justice never goes forth,

For the wicked surround the righteous,

So justice goes forth perverted.

Look among the nations and see,

Wonder and be astounded,

For I am doing a work in your days,

That you would not believe if told.

For I am raising up the Chaldeans,

That bitter and hasty nation,

Who march through the breadth of the earth,

To seize dwellings not their own.

They are dreaded and fearsome,

Their justice and dignity go forth from themselves.

Their horses are swifter than leopards,

More fierce than the evening wolves.

Their horsemen press proudly on,

Their horsemen come from afar,

They fly like an eagle,

Swift to devour.

They all come for violence,

All their faces forward.

They gather captives like sand,

At kings they scoff,

And at rulers they laugh.

They laugh at every fortress,

For they pile up earth and take it.

Then they sweep by like the wind,

And go on,

Guilty men,

Whose own might is their God.

Are you not from everlasting,

O Lord my God,

My Holy One?

We shall not die,

O Lord.

You have ordained them as judgment,

And you, O Rock,

Have established them for reproof.

You are of purer eyes than to see evil,

And cannot look at wrong.

Why do you idly look at traitors,

And are silent when the wicked swallows up,

The man more righteous than he?

You make mankind like the fish of the sea,

Like crawling things that have no ruler.

He brings all of them up with a hook,

He drags them out with his net,

He gathers them in his dragnet,

So he rejoices and is glad.

Therefore he sacrifices to his net,

And makes offerings to his dragnet,

For by them he lives in luxury,

And his food is rich.

Is he then to keep on emptying his net,

And mercilessly killing nations forever?

I will take my stand at my watchpost,

And station myself on the tower,

And look out to see what he will say to me,

And what I will answer concerning my complaint.

So may God bless that reading from his word.

We'll again just unite our hearts in prayer.

Let us pray.

Lord our gracious God,

May you help us as we open up your word this day,

As we read it together,

And as we share from it,

That your word would minister to our hearts,

That you will help us to understand these words,

That we are reading and sharing together,

That you will help us to apply them to our lives,

And to our walk with you,

And to our witness to those around us.

For we realize that there are many parts in scripture,

That may leave us with a sense of wondering,

What you are saying to us.

Wondering maybe what you were saying to Habakkuk,

In his day,

And how that might apply to ourselves today.

And so help us in our understanding,

Lord,

To see that you have purposes for all your people down through every generation,

And that your way of salvation is always being worked out according to your will,

Even when your will goes against what we might pray for or be looking for.

We know that you know better,

And we pray to have faith in you,

To have that trust in you.

You have been reminded in the psalm that we sung there,

Psalm 90,

That a thousand years is like a day with you.

It reminds us that,

Although we want to see things change immediately and now,

That your plans and purposes so often take time to be worked out,

But that you have your picture in hand,

That you have all things under your control,

And that you will work all things according to your purpose.

And so,

Lord,

We pray for your comfort,

For your strength,

For your help on a daily basis,

That we would know your love towards us,

That we would know that you have remembered us,

And are remembering us constantly,

That not a day passes,

Lord,

When you are not aware of all our different needs.

Not a day passes when you are not aware of all that is going on around us.

And so,

Lord,

We come humbly before you.

We come acknowledging our own sin and our own frailties,

And praying to you,

Lord,

That you might come and draw near to us,

Give us your assurance,

Give us your comfort,

And give us your peace.

We pray that for us all here gathered,

Tuning in online,

And all around us,

Lord,

Who need you in particular ways.

We pray for those who mourn and grieve.

We commit them to your care,

And to your keeping,

Each one.

We know,

Lord,

That,

As we've been reminded in this past week,

That change comes upon us so quickly.

We are always reminded of it,

Lord,

Day by day.

And yet,

Help us to take heed.

Help us to see how you speak to us in all of these ways.

And your word ministers to us in the midst of it all,

Calling us to yourself,

To make our calling and election sure.

To make it a day when we would run to you.

A day we would seek to find you as our refuge,

As our help.

And so,

Lord,

We pray to you,

To you to surround us all,

And especially those with broken hearts at this time.

Remember those who are unwell as well,

In homes,

In hospital,

And in their own homes too,

Lord.

We commit each one to you.

Surround them and uphold them,

We pray,

As only you can.

Knowing,

Oh Lord,

That you have them in your hand as well.

That our very lives are in your hand.

That you care for us in that way and at each time.

So,

Lord,

Help us so we might take all our cares and our burdens to you.

We thank you too,

Lord,

For the work of the gospel.

We thank you for the witness of your church here in our community and far and wide.

And we do pray for your church,

Lord,

That you will build it up.

It does not belong to us.

It is not ours of our making in any way.

It is your church,

Your people,

Your people that you have bought with a price.

And help us to put you first in all things.

To seek first the kingdom of God and your righteousness.

And that then all things will be added to us.

And Lord,

We do pray for the word to go out with power.

We pray for your spirit to work.

In the work and witness of your people,

We thank you for all our young people.

We commit them to you.

We thank you for the youth fellowship,

Oh,

Lord.

And as they meet this evening,

May your blessing be upon them and upon Thomas Davis as he comes to speak.

We pray there will be an encouragement,

an encouraging time together.

Remember young people sitting exams just now.

As they prepare for them and as they go through them,

Lord,

That you will give them guidance and help along each step of the way.

Remember the free church seminary as well.

And the exams taking place there just now.

We pray for all the students.

Remember Scott as he is away just now,

Lord,

And pray for him as he comes to his last exam on Tuesday,

that you will be with them and uphold them through that and all others who are taking these exams just now as well.

We pray for those who are coming to the end of their time in the seminary and will be awaiting calls in these comings months.

We pray for your guidance to them,

your spirit to make clear to them where you would have them to go.

We pray for our presbytery in these days as well.

As we look back to our own presbytery meeting this week,

we know that Reverend Iamacritchie and Graver has accepted a call to Greyfriars in Inverness.

And we pray for him in his preparation to leave a congregation and to begin a new ministry.

We thank you for his years of ministry in Graver.

And we thank you for all the encouragements and blessings that he has seen.

And we do pray for the congregation as they prepare to see him go,

that they will remember that you are with them and that it is not any minister's ministry that counts,

but the blessing of God.

And so we pray,

Lord,

that you will surround them and uphold them.

We pray for Greyfriars as they prepare for a new ministry as well,

Lord,

that you will encourage and strengthen them.

And remember our presbyteries throughout our land,

O Lord,

where there is weakness,

where there is vacancy.

We pray,

Lord,

for your encouragement to each congregation and all your people.

Remember our general assembly to take place later on this month as it meets in Edinburgh.

We pray for the Reverend Bob Aykroyd as he prepares to come to the end of his time as moderator.

And we pray for the Reverend Colin McLeod as he prepares to take that role on,

that you will bless him and encourage him as he prepares for that and as he goes on,

God willing,

in this year ahead.

And we see so much around us,

Lord,

that are so many needs.

And we just pray,

Lord,

for your Spirit's help among us,

for you to move among us as a people,

Lord,

to hear our prayers and to help us,

Lord,

to always pray with that sense of your will be done.

Teach us your ways,

O Lord,

and help us to walk by them.

And all we ask,

we ask with the forgiveness of all our sins,

as we confess them anew before you,

in the name of our Lord and Saviour,

Jesus Christ.

May glory be his.

Amen.

We're going to sing again to God's praise

before we turn back to our reading in Habakkuk,

this time in Psalm 13,

page 14 of the Psalm books.

Psalm 13.

We'll sing the whole of this psalm,

and you'll see the words,

especially there in verse 1,

they resonate with what we've read in Habakkuk as well.

The same question from the psalmist,

how long will you forget me,

Lord?

Will you forget always?

How long,

Lord,

will you hide your face

and turn from me your gaze?

But then at verse 5,

we see the psalmist saying,

but still I trust your constant love.

You save and set me free.

With joy,

I will extol the Lord,

who has been good to me.

Let's sing the whole of this psalm,

the tune of St. Kilda.

We sing to God's praise.

Amen.

How long will you forget me,

Lord?

Will you forget always?

How long,

Lord,

will you hide your face

and turn from me your gaze?

How long must I be sad each day

in the perplexity?

How long will my opponent stand

in triumph over me?

O Lord,

my God,

consider me

and give me your reply.

Light up my eyes,

Lord,

I will see

the sick of those who die.

Then would my enemy

give them

at last I made them low.

And so my foes would sing for joy

to see my overthrow.

But still,

I trust your constant love.

You save and set me free.

With joy I will extol the Lord,

who has been good to me.

Well, let's turn back to a reading

in Habakkuk chapter 1.

Habakkuk 1 · chapter mention

Habakkuk chapter 1.

Habakkuk 1 · chapter mention

You can read at verse 5.

Look among the nations and see.

Wonder and be astounded.

For I am doing a work in your days

that you would not believe

if told.

I want us to begin a study

in Habakkuk today.

We're going to look at

through this book.

It seems as you begin to read it

that there's a lot of despair

and a lot of hopelessness here

as you begin to read

into Habakkuk's day

and all that was going on.

You see that there's

lots going on around him,

both in the sense of

nationally,

just around him,

among his own people.

There's a lot going on,

many problems.

Even internationally,

there's a lot going on as well.

A lot that leaves him confused.

There's corruption and chaos.

There's war and there's wrongdoing.

And it's something that you see

again and again

throughout the Old Testament.

You see these times

when there are things

that are going well

for God's people,

but so often you then see

it's followed by a time

where the tide turns,

as it were.

And there seems to be

nothing good,

nothing that gives hope

to God's people.

And it's maybe something

that we see ourselves today as well.

We think the tide

has turned against us.

And just like Habakkuk

has his questions here,

how long, O Lord?

As the psalmist in Psalm 13

was, which we were just singing,

how long, O Lord?

These are the kind of questions

that we can have ourselves as well.

But when you read through

the Old Testament

and when you come to read

from the prophets,

Habakkuk was a prophet

and you've got many other prophets

that we read from

in the Old Testament,

Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel.

There's many of them

that came from God,

were sent by God

with a message.

Into these situations

where there seems to be

so much despair,

God speaks to his people.

And he speaks to them

a message that often begins

with a rebuke,

where they have gone wrong.

And there's always a challenge

in that,

to then show them

how they can find hope,

how they can reestablish,

as it were,

their relationship with God

and that there is that hope.

Now, often when you read

in the prophets,

what you find is

God has given the prophet

a message.

The likes of Isaiah,

God gave him a message

and Isaiah delivered

that message

to the people around him.

And that's where we learn

what God is saying to us.

But Habakkuk is slightly different.

He's a prophet.

He's got a message from God.

You see that in verse 1,

the oracle,

that Habakkuk,

the prophet, saw.

So he's got something

to give to the people

of his day.

He's got something to say

to ourselves today,

as well as a message

from God.

But the message,

as it were,

comes across

in a slightly different way.

Instead of

God just speaking

to Habakkuk,

saying,

tell my people this,

what you see is

it's more of a dialogue

between Habakkuk

and the Lord himself.

And as you're reading

through chapter 1 there,

you're seeing

that there's parts

where Habakkuk is speaking

and there's parts

where the Lord

is speaking to him.

And it's through

this engagement

that they have,

this conversation

that they have,

that we learn

and the people

in Habakkuk's day

learned as well.

In all that is wrong,

he is looking for hope

and he is looking for help.

In the midst of it.

And what you find

as you go through

Habakkuk, the book,

and what we want to see

in our study is

that in the midst

of all that is

maybe hard for us

to read,

all that seems

so hopeless

in so many different ways,

that there are gems

for us to find.

There are gems

for us to find.

Panning for gold

has been something

that people have done

for hundreds of years.

There have been gold rushes

in America,

in Australia,

even here in Scotland.

There's been times

when people have gone

hunting and finding gold,

not in huge quantities.

But to this day,

people still spend

a lot of time

taking time to go out

and go into streams

and digging into the earth,

sifting through mud

and stones,

panning as it is called,

using like a sieve

to clean the earth,

to clean the dirt away

in the hope of finding

just a little bit of gold.

Why, you ask,

would they do that?

Why would they spend

so much time doing that?

Well, it's because

gold is precious.

Even a small quantity,

even an ounce of gold,

is worth up to

around 2,000 pounds.

So that's why people spend

so much time

looking for gold.

And for ourselves,

as we come to God's Word,

it's a little like that

panning for gold.

We're going through,

for example,

this letter of,

this book of Habakkuk,

and we're looking through

all that seems to leave us

thinking,

what good is there here for us?

But to go through it

and sift our way through

and see that there are nuggets

of gold in here.

Nuggets of gold

that Habakkuk was given

to share with the people then

and to share with ourselves.

And there's five nuggets

I want us to see

as we study through this book.

Five different studies

we're going to have

looking at five different nuggets

of gold, as it were.

And the first one we have

is verse 5

here in chapter 1.

And at first glance,

it may seem

a little

out of the way

when we start to look

into chapter 1.

How is there gold?

How is there something precious

in the midst of this?

But we'll go through it today

and look at it

in three different ways.

In chapter 1,

verse 1 to 12 in particular,

we have first

a sense of confusion.

Then secondly,

we have a mysterious providence.

And then thirdly,

we're going to see

a warm embrace.

And we begin

with a sense

of confusion.

Verse 5 says to us,

Look among the nations

and see.

Wonder and be astounded,

for I am doing

a work in your days

that you would not believe

if told.

Where does this come from?

This has come

from God

to Habakkuk.

And it's come

as a result of

Habakkuk's complaint

as we see

in verse 2

to verse 4.

And it's in these

verses 2 to 4

that we see

this sense

of confusion

that Habakkuk has.

Have you ever

complained?

I'm sure we've all

complained

about different things

at different times.

And especially

when it comes

to time

and to how long

something is taking.

How long

until the food

will be ready?

How long

until we get there?

How long

are you going to take

to be ready?

How long

is this parcel

going to take

to arrive?

We have all these

complaints

that we make.

Complaints

surrounding time.

How long?

But have you ever

complained

to God

in that way?

How long

Lord?

Well that is

the complaint

that we see

from Habakkuk.

In verse 2

Oh Lord

how long

shall I cry

for help

and you will not hear?

Or cry

to your violence

and you will not save?

How long

will it take?

Psalm 13

was the same.

How long

will you forget

me Lord?

Will you forget

me?

Always.

Habakkuk

wasn't directing

what God

was saying

to him

straight to the

people.

Habakkuk

was engaging

with God

and he does

this

first of all

with this

complaint

with this

groaning

towards

God

in the midst

of all

that is happening

around him

nationally

but also

internationally

as well

as we will

see as you

go on

and we see

the Chaldeans

or the Babylonians

as they're known

as well

a people

who were

surrounding them

who would be

their enemies

for a time

as he's got

all of these

things going on

he cries out

asking God

are you going

to ignore this?

How long

Lord

will I cry

for help

and you

will not

hear?

What's

happening?

What's

happening

here

in Habakkuk's

day?

Well a writer

put it like

this

Habakkuk

the society

around Habakkuk

is tearing

itself apart

and when you

read through

verse 2

to 4

there you

see just

how

it is

tearing

itself

apart

I cry

to you

violence

and you

will not

save

violence

there

means

chaos

and

just

people

willfully

damaging

and taking

other people's

property

and livelihoods

there's all

this chaos

all around

verse 3

he says

to him

why do you

make me

see

iniquity?

Why am I

living in a

day where I'm

seeing so much

that is against

your cause?

so much

that is

morally

wrong

so much

that we

see people

calling

right

wrong

and wrong

right

his complaint

is saying

to God

why don't

you care?

Are you not

concerned

with all

that is

happening

around us?

Why do

you look

he says

in verse

3 there

and look

idly

at wrong?

Why are you

looking and

not doing

anything

about this?

This is

the complaint

that Habakkuk

has

and is

that a

complaint

that we

might have

against God

today?

Do you

feel like

that towards

God

today?

Like we

are in a

day as

never before

when we

look around

us and

see all

that is

wrong?

When we

are confused

by everything

that's

taking place

in life

whether it's

in our

own lives

lives of

our community

around us

life in

our nation

life in

the world

when there

is so much

wrong we

see it

again and

again

we see

tragedy

we see

murder

we see

political

and society

chaos

we see

confusion

confusion

in gender

confusion

in marriage

we see

greed

we see

poverty

and they're

next door

to each

other

we see

all of

these

things

we see

it on

a daily

basis

that's

the same

as Habakkuk

was seeing

as well

there are

times

again

and again

when we

see

just like

Habakkuk's

day

that was

repeated

again

and again

as you go

into the

New Testament

as you look

down through

the generations

you see it

happening

again and

again

and the

cry of

God's

people can

be the

same

why

how long

oh Lord

are we going

to cry

for help

and you

will not

hear

we cry

as if

God

is ignoring

it all

we complain

against

God

and when

you look

at verse

4 you see

what was it

the heart

of all

that was

wrong

in his

day

the law

is

paralyzed

and justice

never

goes

forth

the law

the word

of God

was paralyzed

we need a

standard

to work

from

when you

think of

manufacturing

there's always

a standard

that things

have to be

made

to

if they're

not

they will

not be

safe

things are

stamped

marked

as in

they've

passed

the test

they've

passed

the standard

but we

find that

people try

to find a

way around

that

people find

a way to

cheat these

things

but it

often costs

dearly

it often

costs in

so many

different

ways

we try

and find

a way

around

things

and that's

what's

happening

here

the law

is

paralyzed

the standards

that they were

working to

and from

are being

put away

to find

another way

of life

another way

of living

and when

that fails

when we move

away

from God's

ideal

to our

own ideas

what comes

chaos

and clashes

ensue

look at

this week

look at

the fear

of the

prospect

of our

nation

having a

Christian

first minister

you think

to yourself

how could

we come

to this

point

where

the immediate

reaction

is to try

and paralyze

that

to stop

that

we can't

have her

she's a

Christian

she's going

to take

us backwards

we've got

to paralyze

this

we've got

to stop

this

the law

is to be

paralyzed

but what

people are

saying

in that

is

we will

not have

God

rule over

us

we will

not have

God's

word

as our

standard

and Christ

is pushed

out

and we go

on in

chaos

blindly

continuing

in chaos

but they'll

call it

progress

and we

see it

all

around us

and we

can have

that same

cry

how long

oh Lord

will you

not hear

us

how long

will you

look

and do

nothing

in these

situations

is this

a cry

and a

complaint

without

hope

from

Habakkuk

well it's

not

it's a

pleading

with

God

his

prayer

may not

have been

answered

the way

he might

have

expected

it

or wanted

it

but he's

not

turning

away

he's

pleading

all the

more

with

God

to hear

and to

come

and to

act

but there's

a sense

of confusion

there's a

sense of

not

understanding

just why

all this

is happening

and that

can be ours

today as

well

we don't

understand

many

things

we will

ask how

long

we will

ask

why

but if

we

understood

everything

we wouldn't

need

faith

and what

Habakkuk

is showing

us here

is that

we still

need

to be

a people

of faith

even in

the midst

of the

confusion

that we

can feel

in all

that leaves

us

devastated

worried

and fearful

for all

that's

going on

around

us

so his

cry

his

complaint

has a

sense

of

confusion

and he's

asking

how long

will this

go on

Lord

will you

not

do

something

well the

second thing

we see

is a

mysterious

providence

in the

Lord's

answer

in verse

five

onwards

Habakkuk's

problem

was not

so much

what was

happening

what people

were doing

around him

it was

more what

God

wasn't

doing

that God

wasn't

doing

anything

but is

God

inactive

in Habakkuk's

situation

here

and we

ask ourselves

is God

inactive

in our

days

he not

doing

anything

in our

day

at our

prayers

not being

answered

well look at

the response

that God

gives

to Habakkuk

in verse

five

look he

says

look among

the nations

and see

wonder and

be astounded

for I am

doing a

work in

your days

that you

would not

believe

if told

this is

the nugget

that we're

looking for

today

this is

something

precious

that we're

looking at

today

but it

may not

seem

as a

great

comfort

immediately

as we

look at

it

this is

the Lord's

response

to Habakkuk's

claim that

God was

doing

nothing

but he

says

look

I am

doing a

work

in your

days

what work

is he

doing

how

are

things

going

to

change

in

Habakkuk's

day

and you

can begin

to maybe

feel a

sense of

anticipation

for

Habakkuk

the Lord

is saying

no I

am

taking

action

there's

this sense

of

excitement

maybe

in

Habakkuk

building

what's

he

going

to

do

is

this

going

to be

the

answer

as we

think

of a

prayer

in the

New

Testament

that the

Lord

is

going

to do

abundantly

more

than we

ask

or imagine

when there's

this sense

of you

would not

believe it

if told

what is

it that

is going

to come

is the

Lord going

to change

this turmoil

into peace

is he going

to bring

prosperity

and praise

of the

Lord once

again

is he going

to bring

revival

is he going

to deal

with all

the enemies

that surround

them

Habakkuk

and the

people

will be

waiting

with a

sense

of

anticipation

and excitement

what is

God

going

to do

well the

answer

is shocking

the answer

is in many

ways this

mysterious

providence

look at what

the Lord

says

in verse 6

for behold

I am

raising up

the Chaldeans

also known

as the

Babylonians

that bitter

and hasty

nation

and as you

read down

three these

verses down

to verse 11

you see

this is not

the answer

that Habakkuk

would have

been expecting

or wanting

I am doing

a work

that you would

not believe

if I told

but hold on

Lord

you're sending

the Chaldeans

you're sending

this Babylonian

army

this enemy

of ours

you're sending

them

whose might

is their God

as it says

in verse 11

you're sending

them

how can

any good

come from

this

how can

this be

what you

want

for us

well it's

because we

expect God

to work

in the ways

that we

want

but sometimes

God works

in different

ways

God works

in mysterious

ways

God works

in the ways

of providence

that we

cannot

understand

God brings

times

of chaos

God brings

times

of judgment

God's

goodness

is not

just seen

in days

of revival

God's

goodness

is not

just seen

in days

of blessing

we can

still see

God's

goodness

in the midst

of his

judgment

in the midst

of his

speaking to

us

in these

powerful ways

in the midst

of many

things that

we see

going on

around us

today

the tragedies

the wars

the pandemics

the chaos

that is

always there

can we not

see that

God is

still working

in the midst

of that

you see a little

of that in

verse 12

as Habakkuk

replies

are you not

from everlasting

O Lord

my God

we shall not

die O Lord

you have

ordained them

as a judgment

you have brought

them upon us

for judgment

and there

are times

when God

will bring

judgment

on his

people

and we

don't see

it as the

answer to

prayer

and yet

God

can use

even the

darkest

of days

to bring

glory

to himself

William Cooper

the hymn

writer

in the

1700s

he wrote

many different

hymns

but so many

of them

were written

in the midst

of his own

suffering

in life

he suffered

great periods

of depression

and very

dark times

and the

last hymn